Green tech execs descend on Washington to press for climate change bill

[Ardent15]

WASHINGTON — Hundreds of green-energy company executives, including many from Silicon Valley, descended on Washington this week to urge members of Congress to pass a sweeping climate change bill, which they predicted would spur billions of dollars in clean-energy investments and ease the nation's dependence on foreign oil.

The entrepreneurs got a boost of encouragement from the White House on Wednesday at a forum featuring some of the Obama administration's top environmental officials, whose message was short and direct: We need your help.

The House in June passed far-reaching legislation designed to combat global warming, and focus has now shifted to the Senate. But similar legislation faces an uphill fight there thanks to regional concern among senators from oil- and coal-dependent states.

During a question-and-answer session, Energy Secretary Steven Chu cited a Congressional Budget Office estimate that the House bill would boost energy costs for the average household by roughly the equivalent of a postage stamp each day.

"Is 44 cents a day worth it?" asked Chu, the former head of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. "You should convince some of your senators who are on the fence that it is worth it."

Among the executives on hand was one of Silicon Valley's best-known venture capitalists, John Doerr, who has emerged as a leading business voice for the climate change bill. After meeting with members of Congress this week, the partner at Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers said he was partly encouraged and partly concerned about what's on the horizon. "Like many conversations in the country, it's getting quickly polarized and political," Doerr said in an interview with the Mercury News.

The climate legislation would place a cap on carbon emissions for the first time, effectively putting a price on energy consumption that contributes to global warming. Doerr and other supporters predict that would trigger a dramatic shift away from oil and toward solar and wind and batteries, spurring billions in new investments and creating new jobs. Opponents call a so-called cap-and-trade system tantamount to a huge tax increase on energy.

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<http://www.mercurynews.com/bay-area-news/ci_13510349>

[Forkboy]

1. K&R for real news.

:kick:

[excess_3]

2. I'm still waiting for these guys to build electric power plants .nt